U.S. consumer credit grew in July as card and auto debt rose

U.S. consumer credit increased in July as borrowing expanded in both installment and revolving accounts, according to a Federal Reserve report released September 8, 2026. The data show continued credit growth, but they do not by themselves establish that households nationwide are in a broad debt crisis.

Total consumer credit rose at a 4.2% seasonally adjusted annual rate in July. Most of the increase came from nonrevolving credit, which includes auto, education and other installment loans. Revolving credit, a broader category that includes most credit-card debt, also increased.

What the July Federal Reserve data show

The Federal Reserve’s preliminary G.19 report put July nonrevolving-credit growth at a 4.8% annual rate. Revolving credit rose at a 2.5% annual rate and stood at $1.357 trillion on a seasonally adjusted basis.

The report listed total credit flow at an annual rate of $216.7 billion. That included $33.6 billion in revolving credit and $183.1 billion in nonrevolving credit, meaning nonrevolving credit accounted for most of the reported July flow.

Those annualized figures are not the same as a guaranteed dollar increase that occurred during one month. The Federal Reserve converts the July pace into an annual rate to make the data easier to compare with other periods. The July figures are preliminary and may be revised.

Why the categories matter

Revolving credit generally allows borrowers to use, repay and reuse available credit, as with credit cards. Nonrevolving credit is usually tied to a fixed loan and repayment schedule, including many auto and education loans.

Revolving credit is broader than credit-card balances alone, so the two measures should not be treated as identical. The July increase nevertheless shows that credit-card-related borrowing continued to expand within the Federal Reserve’s broader revolving-credit category.

New York Fed data add household-debt context

A separate New York Fed report covering the second quarter showed a mixed picture. Total U.S. household debt fell by $13 billion to $18.771 trillion, even as credit-card and auto-loan balances increased.

Credit-card balances rose by $21 billion to $1.263 trillion. Auto debt increased by $28 billion to $1.713 trillion. Those changes show that borrowing growth was concentrated in some major household-credit categories rather than reflected in an across-the-board increase in total debt.

Delinquencies remain an important signal

The New York Fed said delinquency rates across most products had held steady over the past two years, while new credit-card and auto-loan delinquencies remained elevated. In Q2 2026, 4.7% of outstanding household debt was in some stage of delinquency.

In the second quarter, 6.97% of credit-card debt flowed into serious delinquency, defined as at least 90 days past due. That was nearly unchanged from 6.93% a year earlier. The comparable serious-delinquency transition rate for auto loans was 3.00%, up from 2.93% in the second quarter of 2025.

These small year-over-year changes do not show a sudden surge in delinquency. They do show why the New York Fed is continuing to monitor credit-card and auto-loan repayment performance as balances rise.

What consumers should watch next

Later Federal Reserve releases and revisions will show whether July’s borrowing pace continues. Future New York Fed household-debt reports will provide another view of balances, repayment behavior and delinquency transitions.

For individual households, national totals do not determine whether a borrower is at risk. Interest rates, monthly payments, income, credit limits and the ability to repay on time remain more important to a household’s financial position than national averages alone.

The current data point to continued borrowing, led by nonrevolving credit, alongside higher credit-card and auto balances in the second quarter. They indicate repayment pressure in selected categories, but not a definitive nationwide household-finance crisis.

Sources

Look for updates to this story

Discover more from Interactive News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.